Sanding and polishing a canopy

ive had great success with the tamiya polishing compounds. Make the canopies crystal clear. 

Tanker - Builder

PaulieF;

   This is perfect ! Have you seen the new glue advertised on T.V. You know apply a little and hit it with the U.V.light . Well it works perfect for this kind of repair AND you can sand it if you have to.

   Now the trick is to make as thin an application as possible .The nice part .If you don't like it at first , wipe it off BEFORE you hit it with the light and do it over !

 Try it , You'll like it !    T.B. 

 

PaulieF;

   This is perfect ! Have you seen the new glue advertised on T.V. You know apply a little and hit it with the U.V.light . Well it works perfect for this kind of repair AND you can sand it if you have to.

   Now the trick is to make as thin an application as possible .The nice part .If you don't like it at first , wipe it off BEFORE you hit it with the light and do it over !

 Try it , You'll like it !    T.B. 

 Hi;

 I am glad it worked out       

On your aircraft it's important .Gotta see the goodies in the office , right ? T.B.

I use nail sanding/polishing sticks from Target or Walmart. There's like 8 different grits on the stick, ranging from sanding to polishing. I then take a Q Tip and a dab of Siminiz Haze Remover and polish the inside and outside of the canopy. then I use an old soft cotton T shirt to clean everything and dip the canopy in Future which also protects the canopy against fogging and inproves the clarity. Aqua Gloss from Alclad will also work just like Future. 

of course I put a deep gouge in the canopy masking it and I cant get that sucker out no matter what. ugh.

Tanker - Builder

Hi;

 I am sure my approach is totally different . I sand the Canopy inside and out with 3200 grit wet and sloppy .then I get jewelry polish or headlight cover polish .The second by KIT in an auto parts store .

  Then the fun . A big glob of polish and a " Q ' tip with added cotton and just scrub away on the inside till it gets shiny and mark free .Then Tooth paste for the finish on the outside . You don't really need that Future stuff . Use the Novus system # 2 polish and finisher .

    The biggest thing is to never put the canopy in a strain  , like squeezing or flattening .Be very careful and let it float around in the palm of your hand if you think you might hurt it .      T.B.

 

Hi;

 I am sure my approach is totally different . I sand the Canopy inside and out with 3200 grit wet and sloppy .then I get jewelry polish or headlight cover polish .The second by KIT in an auto parts store .

  Then the fun . A big glob of polish and a " Q ' tip with added cotton and just scrub away on the inside till it gets shiny and mark free .Then Tooth paste for the finish on the outside . You don't really need that Future stuff . Use the Novus system # 2 polish and finisher .

    The biggest thing is to never put the canopy in a strain  , like squeezing or flattening .Be very careful and let it float around in the palm of your hand if you think you might hurt it .      T.B.

I recommend the Future route. If I have flaws a canopy or windshield, I only go down to #600.  The future takes it from there.

I get all my extremely fine sandpaper from the autobody store.  It's relatively inexpensive and they have the best quality wet sand paper.  Always wet sand canopies, and by hand.  Personally I carefully and slowly scrape off the seam with an x-acto #11, then 320 to 2000 wet sand,  then Future.

mrmike

If you have a store in your area that sells Automotive paints and supplies, they will have much finer grades of wet & dry sandpaper, foam sanding pads and other fine finishing products that will help you buff out your canopy(ies) to a good lustre before the Future dip.

Mike   

 

If you have a store in your area that sells Automotive paints and supplies, they will have much finer grades of wet & dry sandpaper, foam sanding pads and other fine finishing products that will help you buff out your canopy(ies) to a good lustre before the Future dip.

Mike   

Its already all sanded and very scratched up. I didnt want all that raised detail on there. I just want to make my own lines. Ive tried everything to polish this thing but nothing works. I even used Flitz on a buffing wheel.   Thank God, this kit came with an extra canopy.  I was just testing the first one out. I cracked the hell out of it too. 

mississippivol

One way to clear it up is with a polish kit containing paper grits from 3200 to 10,000 grit. Start with the 3200 and proceed with the next higher number until you finish up with the 10k grit. Then you should be able to use a liquid polish like Novus to get the final shine, or dip it in Future floor polish, which is what I do.

 

One way to clear it up is with a polish kit containing paper grits from 3200 to 10,000 grit. Start with the 3200 and proceed with the next higher number until you finish up with the 10k grit. Then you should be able to use a liquid polish like Novus to get the final shine, or dip it in Future floor polish, which is what I do.